IU Government Structure
Central Government Following the resolutions passed in the wake of the Representation Incident, the IU governing council (IUGC), located on Pax, was made up of three elected representatives from each member island, with one appointed as the chief executive. These representatives were elected by the citizens of their nations, though the exact process varied from island to island. A single individual could serve at most two five-year terms on the council and one three-year term as the executive. Executive power rotated between the islands every three years, with the executive office of Council Head filled by one of that island's representatives. Most matters were settled with a majority vote, with the executive serving as a tiebreaker if needed. The Council Head did not possess veto power. The representatives did possess impeachment power over the Council Head, but as the executive position functioned more as an arbitrating body than a governor, this power was never utilized in IU history. As of the launch of the Ingenuity, there were committees for the visual arts, performing arts, literature and poetry, health care, space, science, storms, trade, transportation, etc. These committees were comprised of five to seven experts in the field plus two committee chairs appointed by the IUGC. In addition to reporting back to the IUGC, the committee chairs were charged with organizing, acquiring funding, selecting experts, and performing other tasks relevant to their committees. Judiciary The judiciary branch of the IU was comprised of one judge from each island who would be elected to the office by the people of their island. Terms could be served only once, up to a period of fifteen years. The judiciary heard only international cases or ones that dealt with violations of IU treaties or mandates. These latter cases were effectively international cases as well, as IU policies deal largely with international standards and relations between islands. Most legal issues were handled by a subset of the judiciary comprised of IU-approved judges on each island who would oversee and sit in on non-international court cases. These judges were required to complete training in both IU international policy and in their island's specific legal tradition, which varied; after completion of training, they would complete a written and oral interview approved by four other island judges before being officially granted their new position. Apart from the universality of the application process, the rituals and structure observed during the trial and within the court room itself varied by island. On all islands, cases would be brought before these judges by certified individuals who, unlike judges, were required to complete training only in the island's legal tradition. This training, while rigorous, was required by the IU to be free and accessible to all citizens of that island. Non-citizens were also usually able to undergo this training, though they would often be charged a steep fee. Certification was required to be maintained by completion of continuing education courses each calendar year. Often, individuals would specialize in other fields, such as economics, then receive their certification and handle economics- or business-related cases only. This made the courts more accessible throughout the IU. There were also professional law specialists who would become certified in many or all of the IU legal traditions. Due to the high costs of becoming certified on an island on which one was not a citizen, these professional law specialists were few in number, but were widely regarded as the best of the best, and could place high prices on their services. Individuals wishing to argue international cases before the IU judiciary were required, similarly, to complete certification on the international level. Island Governments The IUGC did not have jurisdiction over the handling of day-to-day affairs on any islands except for Nezuma, Skobra, and Pax. With the exception of the aforementioned islands, members of the IU were permitted to maintain smaller governments which were subordinate to -- but, to a significant degree, independent from -- the IUGC. This preserved the autonomy and independence of each island even within the greater Island Union. While the IUGC remained mostly separate from island-specific affairs, countries were able to apply for IU funding for major public works and infrastructure projects such as dams, highways, harbors, art schools, etc.